Scottish Executive

Adult Education

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what support it provides to the Scottish Adult Learning Partnership.

Mr Jim Wallace: In 2003-04 the Scottish Adult Learning Partnership was awarded £20,000 Headquarters Grant under the Further Education (Approved Associations) (Scotland) Grant Regulations 1989.

Agriculture

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it has made on its plans for the future of environmentally sensitive areas.

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how the benefits of work carried out by farmers and crofters over the last 10 years in environmentally sensitive areas will be sustained in any replacement scheme.

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will extend the environmentally sensitive area scheme for a further five years in response to views of farmers and crofters and other organisations involved in the scheme.

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what its response is to concerns expressed by farmers, crofters and other organisations involved in environmentally sensitive areas, in response to its consultation on the future of such areas, that many of the benefits achieved within the environmentally sensitive area scheme might be put at risk if the scheme is merged with the Rural Stewardship Scheme.

Ross Finnie: The Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) Schemes closed to new applications on 31 December 2000 and were replaced by the Rural Stewardship Scheme. However, I am aware of the environmental and other benefits which the ESA Schemes have delivered and that is why I issued a consultation paper on 5 March seeking views on options for continued agri-environment support for farmers and crofters when their existing 10-year ESA agreement expires. The consultation period ended on 30 May. I will consider the precise way forward in light of responses received, but am determined to have appropriate arrangements in place to provide continued agri-environmental support for those whose ESA Scheme agreements are coming to an end in the next few years.

Courts

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to questions S1W-28726 and S1W-30468 by Mr Jim Wallace on 26 September and 10 October 2002 respectively, when the feasibility study on the refurbishment of Peebles Sheriff Court will be published and when the consultation paper will be issued.

Cathy Jamieson: The feasibility study on the refurbishment of Peebles Sheriff Court has already been issued to all interested parties. The public consultation will commence when discussions regarding the potential relocation of the court to the council premises at Rosetta Road have concluded.

Dentistry

Richard Lochhead (North East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any funding from NHS Education for Scotland was allocated for converting a building in Aberdeen for interim postgraduate dental training facilities and then withdrawn and, if so, why it was withdrawn; what level of funding had been requested for the facilities; when any decision was taken to withdraw such funding; to whom any such decision was communicated, and whether it will provide any new funding to improve the postgraduate training facilities for the dental profession in Grampian prior to any establishment of a more permanent facility.

Malcolm Chisholm: NHS Education for Scotland (NES) have allocated £100,000 to the development of the Westburn Centre. The Westburn Centre funding was not withdrawn but delayed while NES went through an option appraisal on alternatives. This is normal practice and to ensure value for money as the Westburn Centre has a limited lifespan. We can now confirm that NES will be proceeding with this development shortly.

Dentistry

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will announce the results of the review of fluoridation policy.

Malcolm Chisholm: I refer the member to the answer given to question S2W-247 on 4 June 2002. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Diabetes

Mr David Davidson (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how it will participate in Diabetes Week from 8 to 14 June 2003.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Scottish Executive welcomes the work of Diabetes UK in raising the profile of diabetes through activities such as Diabetes Week. The Executive is committed to improving services for people with diabetes and has initiated a programme of work to support the delivery of the Scottish Diabetes Framework. Recent developments include the publication of the results of the Scottish Diabetes Survey 2002 , the publication of a Scottish Diabetes Core Dataset, the circulation of a competency framework to support continuing professional education and the announcement of £1.5 million to support the development of Managed Clinical Networks in diabetes.

Drug Misuse

Miss Annabel Goldie (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people, in each year since the introduction of Drug Treatment and Testing Orders, have (a) had an order imposed, (b) breached the conditions of an order and (c) committed another drugs offence following the conclusion of their order.

Cathy Jamieson: The following table detail for each scheme (a) the number of Drug Treatment and Testing Orders (DTTOs) imposed since the introduction of the order in 1999 and (b) the numbers of offenders who have been reported to the courts for breach of their orders. It should be noted that the Edinburgh, Tayside and Renfrewshire/Inverclyde schemes have only been in operation since early 2003.

  


Scheme 
  

No. of Orders Imposed
(to 31 March 2003) 
  

No. of Offenders Breaching Order
(to 31 March 2003) 
  



Glasgow 
  

316 
  

57 
  



Fife 
  

200 
  

47 
  



Aberdeen 
  

63 
  

14 
  



Edinburgh/Midlothian 
  

8 
  

1 
  



Tayside 
  

3 
  

0 
  



Renfrewshire/East Renfrew/Inverclyde 
  

6 
  

0 
  



Total 
  

596 
  

119 
  



  Note:

  Figures for the Fife and Glasgow schemes include DTTOs made by the Drug Courts.

  The Scottish Executive publishes data on reconvictions for offenders discharged from custody or given a non-custodial sentence in a statistical bulletin for a follow-up period of between one and four years from the date of sentence/release. The data on DTTOs for analysis will be available later this year.

Drugs Courts

Miss Annabel Goldie (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people, in each year since the introduction of drugs courts, have (a) appeared before the courts, (b) breached the conditions of their sentence and (c) committed another drugs offence after completing their sentence.

Cathy Jamieson: Glasgow Drugs Court - in the first 18 months of operation (November 2001 to April 2003), 144 people were referred to Glasgow Drugs Court. Eighty-six offenders received Drugs Court Orders. Ten orders were breached and four orders were revoked.

  Fife Drugs Court - the referral criteria in the Fife Drugs Court are different from the Glasgow Drugs Court. In the first seven months of operation (September 2002 to March 2003), there were 317 referrals and 67 offenders have received Drugs Court Orders. All existing Drug Treatment and Testing Orders in Fife (73) were transferred into the Fife Drugs Court for reviewing purposes in September 2002, increasing the total to 140 orders. Of these, 31 have been breached/revoked.

  The independent evaluation commissioned into the Drugs Court pilots includes a reconviction study. The report on the outcome evaluation will be submitted in early 2004, with a final report (including the results of the reconviction study) submitted in January 2005. This is in line with the timing of other reconviction studies.

Employment

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) full-time, (b) part-time and (c) seasonal workers have been employed in each industry sector in each year since 1999-2000, expressed also as a percentage of the total workforce.

Mr Jim Wallace: The following tables show the number of full-time, part-time and seasonal workers by industry sector, in Scotland, in each year from 1999-2002. Each table also shows the number of worker expressed as a percentage of the total workforce.

  1999

  

 

Number in Employment 
  

Percentage of Total Workforce 
  



Full-Time
(000) 
  

Part-Time
(000) 
  

Seasonal
(000) 
  

Full-Time
% 
  

Part-Time
% 
  

Seasonal
% 
  




A-B: Agriculture and fishing,
C,E: Energy and water 
  

100 
  

9 
  

.. 
  

4.3 
  

0.4 
  

.. 
  



D: Manufacturing 
  

331 
  

24 
  

.. 
  

14.2 
  

1.0 
  

.. 
  



F: Construction 
  

173 
  

9 
  

.. 
  

7.4 
  

0.4 
  

.. 
  



G-H: Distribution, hotels 
and restaurants 
  

265 
  

190 
  

6 
  

11.3 
  

8.1 
  

0.2 
  



I: Transport and Communication 
  

135 
  

27 
  

.. 
  

5.8 
  

1.1 
  

.. 
  



J-K Banking, Finance and Insurance etc 
  

235 
  

56 
  

.. 
  

10.1 
  

2.4 
  

.. 
  



L-N: Public admin education and health 
  

435 
  

206 
  

.. 
  

18.6 
  

8.8 
  

.. 
  



O-Q: Other services 
  

86 
  

50 
  

.. 
  

3.7 
  

2.1 
  

.. 
  



Workplace outside of UK 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  



All industries 
  

1,763 
  

574 
  

15 
  

75.4 
  

24.6 
  

0.6 
  



  2000

  

 

Number in Employment 
  

Percentage of Total Workforce 
  



Full-time
(000) 
  

Part-Time
(000) 
  

Seasonal
(000) 
  

Full-Time
% 
  

Part-Time
% 
  

Seasonal
% 
  



A-B: Agriculture and fishing,
C,E: Energy and water 
  

111 
  

8 
  

.. 
  

4.6 
  

0.3 
  

.. 
  



D: Manufacturing 
  

326 
  

26 
  

.. 
  

13.6 
  

1.1 
  

.. 
  



F: Construction 
  

180 
  

11 
  

.. 
  

7.5 
  

0.5 
  

.. 
  



G-H: Distribution, hotels 
and restaurants 
  

268 
  

199 
  

6 
  

11.2 
  

8.3 
  

0.3 
  



I: Transport and Communication 
  

135 
  

28 
  

.. 
  

5.6 
  

1.2 
  

.. 
  



J-K Banking, Finance and Insurance etc 
  

248 
  

50 
  

.. 
  

10.3 
  

2.1 
  

.. 
  



L-N: Public admin education and health 
  

452 
  

210 
  

.. 
  

18.8 
  

8.7 
  

.. 
  



O-Q: Other services 
  

90 
  

48 
  

.. 
  

3.8 
  

2.0 
  

.. 
  



Workplace outside of UK 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  



All industries 
  

1,812 
  

587 
  

15 
  

75.5 
  

24.4 
  

0.6 
  



  2001

  

 

Number in Employment 
  

Percentage of Total Workforce 
  



Full-Time
(000) 
  

Part-Time
(000) 
  

Seasonal
(000) 
  

Full-Time
% 
  

Part-Time
% 
  

Seasonal
% 
  



A-B: Agriculture and fishing,
C,E: Energy and water 
  

110 
  

9 
  

.. 
  

4.6 
  

0.4 
  

.. 
  



D: Manufacturing 
  

317 
  

25 
  

.. 
  

13.2 
  

1.1 
  

.. 
  



F: Construction 
  

175 
  

8 
  

.. 
  

7.3 
  

0.3 
  

.. 
  



G-H: Distribution, hotels 
and restaurants 
  

269 
  

200 
  

.. 
  

11.2 
  

8.3 
  

.. 
  



I: Transport and Communication 
  

140 
  

23 
  

.. 
  

5.8 
  

1.0 
  

.. 
  



J-K Banking, Finance and Insurance etc 
  

257 
  

59 
  

.. 
  

10.7 
  

2.4 
  

.. 
  



L-N: Public admin education and health 
  

464 
  

199 
  

.. 
  

19.4 
  

8.3 
  

.. 
  



O-Q: Other services 
  

92 
  

44 
  

.. 
  

3.8 
  

1.8 
  

.. 
  



Workplace outside of UK 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  



All industries 
  

1,825 
  

571 
  

9 
  

76.2 
  

23.8 
  

0.4 
  



  2002

  

 

Number in Employment 
  

Percentage of Total Workforce 
  



Full-Time
(000) 
  

Part-Time
(000) 
  

Seasonal
(000) 
  

Full-Time
% 
  

Part-Time
% 
  

Seasonal
% 
  



A-B: Agriculture and fishing,
C,E: Energy and water 
  

98 
  

7 
  

.. 
  

4.1 
  

0.3 
  

.. 
  



D: Manufacturing 
  

300 
  

26 
  

.. 
  

12.4 
  

1.1 
  

.. 
  



F: Construction 
  

167 
  

7 
  

.. 
  

6.9 
  

0.3 
  

.. 
  



G-H: Distribution, hotels 
and restaurants 
  

271 
  

205 
  

6 
  

11.2 
  

8.5 
  

0.2 
  



I: Transport and Communication 
  

132 
  

25 
  

.. 
  

5.5 
  

1.1 
  

.. 
  



J-K Banking, Finance and Insurance etc 
  

268 
  

70 
  

.. 
  

11.1 
  

2.9 
  

.. 
  



L-N: Public admin education and health 
  

484 
  

214 
  

.. 
  

20.1 
  

8.9 
  

.. 
  



O-Q: Other services 
  

87 
  

47 
  

.. 
  

3.6 
  

1.9 
  

.. 
  



Workplace outside of UK 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  

.. 
  



All industries 
  

1,806 
  

605 
  

12 
  

74.9 
  

25.1 
  

0.5

Football

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what funding is available for the development of youth football; from what budget such funding is allocated, and over how many years the funding has been earmarked.

Mr Frank McAveety: The Executive contributed £41,000 in 2002-03 from monies allocated for sport towards the costs of an independent review of youth football development. We will consider the financial implications arising from its recommendations when the study is completed.

  Football development benefits directly through a wide range of lottery and Exchequer programmes operated by sportscotland such as the Junior Groups Programme, the Sports Facilities Programme and Sportsmatch, and also as part of generic sports programmes such as the School Sport Co-ordinator Programme and the TOP Programme. These programmes are application based and no budget has been set specifically for football.

  Youth football development was also a core priority of the Football Academy Programme for which a budget of £6 million was established over a three-year period to 31 March 2003. We expect football will benefit significantly from implementation of the National and Regional Facilities Strategy announced in March 2003. Football also benefits from being a core sport within the Scottish Institute of Sport.

  The Scottish Women’s Football Association receives grant aid from sportscotland to assist in the development of women’s and girls’ football. We anticipate that around £100,000 per annum will be invested over the next few years.

Football

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the current position is with regard to the creation of full-sized indoor football facilities; when, and over what period, the £30 million earmarked for indoor sports facilities will be made available and whether these funds are independent from those committed to  sportscotland

Mr Frank McAveety: Football is likely to be one of the main beneficiaries of the national and regional indoor sports facilities strategy. An outline specification for these facilities together with indicative costings and levels of funding will be issued to relevant organisations by the end of August. In the interim, information on the process, timescales, key facility issues to be addressed and the expected approach – i.e. multi-sport and partnership working - will be issued to potential applicants at the beginning of July. The Executive’s investment of nearly £30 million to help implement the sports facilities strategy is in addition to previously planned levels of funding for  sportscotland. This money will be available over the three-year period up to and including 2005-06.

General Practitioners

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidelines have been issued to GPs regarding charges for reports by GPs.

Malcolm Chisholm: Copies of the National Health Service (General Medical Services) (Scotland) Regulations 1995 were issued to all general practitioners when they came into force. A version which incorporates all amendments since then is now available on the Scottish Health on the Web website. The terms of service for general practitioners are set out in schedule 1 to the regulations and make clear which certificates they must make available to patients, or their representatives, free of charge.

General Practitioners

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on GPs charging for reports sought by a charitable organisation providing a medical service to patients at no cost to the NHS.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Terms of Service for General Practitioners are set out in schedule 1 to the National Health Service (General Medical Services)(Scotland) Regulations 1995. GPs are required to provide to their patients, or the patient's representative, free of charge certain medical certificates listed in the regulations. These are concerned with social security, welfare and health matters. Their NHS duties do not require GPs to issue reports to charitable organisations or others and where they are requested to do so they are entitled to charge for their services.

Health

Carolyn Leckie (Central Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether paediatric in-patient services at Monklands Hospital will resume and, if so, when.

Malcolm Chisholm: No decision has been taken on the future of paediatric in-patient services at Monklands Hospital, which is primarily a matter for NHS Lanarkshire.

  In August 2002 Lanarkshire NHS Board announced a full strategic review to consider paediatric services across its area. The remit of the review group is:

  to look at the children’s health services commissioned by NHS Lanarkshire, identifying strengths, weaknesses and opportunities;

  to make recommendations for prioritised development of services, and

  to make specific recommendations for robust and sustainable paediatric in-patient services.

  I understand that the review group aims to report to the NHS board at its meeting in October 2003, when a decision on the future configuration of paediatric services will be taken. Guidance has been issued to the health service which is clear in stating the importance of consultation and public involvement in service change (HDL(2002)42 Consultation and Public Involvement in Service Change: Draft Interim Guidance, Bib. number 21063). This guidance will shortly be revised to reflect the increasing importance of this issue. NHS Lanarkshire are aware that they must engage in full and transparent consultation with all stakeholders, including parents, clinicians and elected representatives, on the long-term configuration of paediatric services.

Health

Carolyn Leckie (Central Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether Lanarkshire NHS Board has informed it of the permanent closure of in-patient paediatric services at Monklands Hospital; if so, when, and what response it has made.

Malcolm Chisholm: A final decision has not been taken on the future provision of paediatric services in NHS Lanarkshire.

Health

Carolyn Leckie (Central Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-24363 by Malcolm Chisholm on 16 April 2002, whether the standard of consultation referred to has been met by Lanarkshire Primary Care NHS Trust in relation to paediatric in-patient services at Monklands Hospital.

Malcolm Chisholm: I understand that the decision to move paediatric services from Monklands Hospital to Wishaw General Hospital was taken for clinical safety reasons and was not the subject of consultation at that time. NHS Lanarkshire are aware that they must engage in full and transparent consultation with all stakeholders on the long-term configuration of paediatric services.

Health

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to supply ambulatory oxygen to lung disease sufferers.

Malcolm Chisholm: I made a policy commitment in October 2002 that small lightweight oxygen cylinders would be added to the Scottish Drug Tariff. We are currently working on the details of implementation, and intend to make ambulatory oxygen available on GP prescription by the end of the summer.

Health

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to ensure the availability of pulmonary rehabilitation classes to lung disease sufferers.

Malcolm Chisholm: The treatment of lung disease sufferers is a matter for NHS boards to plan, in accordance with their assessment of local needs and circumstances and in consultation with interested parties including patients' groups and the voluntary sector.

Health

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2O-109 by Malcolm Chisholm on 5 June 2003, how many maternity hospitals meet the Expert Group on Acute Maternity Services’ recommendations that consultant-led maternity units dealing with low- to medium-risk pregnancies should have on-site paediatric facilities and that tertiary referral centres dealing with more than 3,000 deliveries per annum should have access to neonatal surgery.

Malcolm Chisholm: Consultant-led maternity units dealing with low- to medium-risk pregnancies and labour are described, within A Framework for Maternity Services in Scotland , as providing level IIb intrapartum care. There are three consultant-led units providing IIb care and all have access to on-site paediatric facilities. All four tertiary referral centres in Scotland have access to neonatal surgery.

Health

Carolyn Leckie (Central Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether NHS trusts have produced records to show compliance with all aspects of the Working Time Regulations 1998 (SI 1998/1833) and EU directive 93/104/EC.

Malcolm Chisholm: NHS HDL (2003) 3, issued to all NHSScotland Trusts on 7 February 2003, requires all NHSScotland employers to hold documentary evidence to confirm compliance with the Working Time Regulations.

Health

Carolyn Leckie (Central Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what resources it has made available to NHS trusts to enable them to implement the Working Time Regulations 1998 (SI 1998/1833) and what assessment it has made of any difference between such resources and the resources that trusts need in order to implement the regulations.

Malcolm Chisholm: It is the responsibility of each NHS board to use the resources available to it through its annual allocation to meet the requirements of the Working Time Regulations.

  In 2003-04 every NHS board received increases of between 7.4 and 8.9%

Hospital-Acquired Infection

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive who has been appointed to the Chief Medical Officer's task force on healthcare-associated infection announced by the Minister for Health and Community Care on 30 January 2003 in response to the Audit Scotland report, Hospital cleaning ; how often the task force has met; what actions it has taken to implement its remit and, in particular, to decrease the prevalence of hospital-acquired infection, and how often the task force has reported to the minister.

Malcolm Chisholm: The membership of the Healthcare Associated Infection Task Force is detailed in the table.

  


Dr Mac Armstrong, Chief Medical Officer, 
  

Chair 
  



Dr Frank Bone, Consultant Microbiologist 
  

Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary 
  



Mr Tim Brett, General Manager 
  

Scottish Centre for Infection and Environmental Health 
  



Mr Alistair Brown, Head, Performance Management Division 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



Mr James T Brown, Head, Public Health Division 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



Ms Susan Brimelow, Manager 
  

Independent Healthcare Division, Central West Region 
  



Dr Peter Christie, Senior Medical Officer 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



Dr Michael Cornbleet, Senior Medical Officer 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



Dr Brian Cowan, Medical Director 
  

South Glasgow University Hospitals NHS Trust 
  



Mrs Rosslyn Crockett, Director of Nursing 
  

Greater Glasgow Primary Care NHS Trust 
  



Dr Andrew K Fraser, Deputy Chief Medical Officer 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



Mr John Gallacher, Joint Secretary 
  

Scottish Partnership Forum 
  



Mrs Liz Gillies, Director of HAI Initiative 
  

NHS Education for Scotland 
  



Mr John Glennie, Chief Executive 
  

NHS Borders 
  



Mr Robert Howe, Head of Environmental Services 
  

South Lanarkshire Council 
  



Miss Anne Jarvie, Chief Nursing Officer 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



Mr Adrian Lucas, Chief Executive 
  

Scottish Ambulance Service 
  



Mrs Maggie McCowan, Senior Manager, Infection Control 
  

Infection Control Nurses Association (Scotland) 
  



Mr Ian McLuckie, Chief Executive 
  

The Property and Environment Forum 
  



Mrs Hazel Meechan, National Development Officer 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



Mrs Diane Murray, Partnership and Employment Practice 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



Mr Mike Palmer, Assistant Director Workforce and Policy 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



Mr Robert B F Peat, General Manager 
  

Eastern Glasgow LHCC 
  



Mr Tom Reilly 
  

Lay representative 
  



Mrs Marjory Russell 
  

Lay representative 
  



Dr Charles Saunders, Consultant in Public Health Medicine 
  

NHS Fife 
  



Ms Lynda Sawers, Corporate Communications Manager 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



Mr Ross Scott, Policy Implementation and Development 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



Dr David Steel, Chief Executive 
  

NHS Quality Improvement Scotland 
  



Mrs Margaret Tannahill, Project Leader, HAI Task Force 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



Mr Ray Watkins, Chief Dental Officer 
  

Scottish Executive Health Department 
  



  The task force, which has met on two occasions and will meet again in the autumn, is overseeing work already in progress and commissioning several new working groups to address a number of specified tasks which are set out in the Hospital Acquired Infection Action Plan. I am regularly updated on progress.

Hospital-Acquired Infection

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what monitoring takes place regarding personal hygiene standards in controlling the transmission of infections.

Malcolm Chisholm: The NHS Quality Improvement Scotland Healthcare Associated Infection (HAI) - Infection Control standards, include a practice standard on hand hygiene. This standard requires NHS trusts to have "a clear hand hygiene policy and mechanism to ensure effective implementation is in place." Also compliance with this policy should form part of a systematic review by trusts.

Hospital-Acquired Infection

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what concerns it has on whether infection control is seen as a core part of NHS nursing, medical and domestic staff training and what specific action it is taking arising from any such concerns.

Malcolm Chisholm: The NHS Quality Improvement Scotland (QIS) Standard for Infection Control makes clear that all staff including those involved in support services must receive training in the prevention and control of infection.

  A number of actions to support training are under way. The Hospital Acquired Infection (HAI) Task Force led by the Chief Medical Officer is overseeing the design of generic and specialist training at all levels. This includes:

  - mandatory induction training on HAI and hygiene

  - a training programme for staff to champion prevention and control of infection developed by NHS Education Scotland and

  - an outline of the training requirements for domestic staff as part of the technical specification for cleaning services.

  Work is also progressing on a Scottish Executive Health Department funded project to develop materials for medical undergraduate training on prudent use of antibiotics.

Hospital-Acquired Infection

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what research has been carried out, or commissioned, into the use of the antibiotic drug cefuroxime in the specific treatment of MRSA and what its position is on the effectiveness of the drug its therapeutic effect against MRSA and whether it may encourage MRSA colonisation and infection in patients, as reported in The Scotsman on 9 June 2003.

Malcolm Chisholm: The prescribing of medicines for patients is a matter for clinicians operating within the appropriate professional guidelines.

Justice

Nicola Sturgeon (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-113 by Elish Angiolini on 2 June 2003, what the cost was of reports to procurator fiscal marked "no proceedings", broken down by reason of (a) time-bar, (b) delay by police/other agency, (c) lack of court resources, (d) procurator fiscal staff shortage and (e) delay by procurator fiscal and type of offence, in each sheriff court district.

Mrs Elish Angiolini: The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service records the nature of case costs but does not attribute this to individual cases. Staff time spent on individual cases is not recorded but costing estimates are based on standard weightings derived from past analysis of staff time spent on the full range of different cases – from minor through to more serious – handled by the department.

  The actual cost of processing cases in the categories identified in the question (which are a subset of all cases which led to a "no proceedings" decision) will be lower than the estimated unit cost of £40 for a case marked "no proceedings". This is because the time taken to mark a case which is seen to be time barred on receipt, or subject to significant delay by the reporting agency, is obviously significantly shorter than for cases where detailed consideration requires to be given to questions of law and sufficiency of evidence.

Landfill Tax

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Her Majesty’s Government with regard to the impact of landfill tax in Scotland and what matters were discussed.

Ross Finnie: The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with the UK Government on a wide range of issues including the landfill tax.

Landfill Tax

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what research has been conducted into the impact of the landfill tax in Scotland.

Ross Finnie: The Scottish Executive published a Review of the Environmental Effects of the Landfill Tax in Scotland in January 2001 which is available in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. number 10648) or on the website at www.scotland.gov.uk/cru/resfinds/erf10-00.asp.

Legislation

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of legislation passed by the Parliament in its first session emanated from the European Union.

Patricia Ferguson: Of the 62 acts passed by the Scottish Parliament during its first session, two contained substantial components linked to European Union legislation. Part 1 of the Water Environment and Water Services (Scotland) Act 2003 made provision in connection with implementation of Directive 2000/60/EC of the Parliament and Council. The Building (Scotland) Act 2003 made provision for a new building standards regime so as to facilitate compliance with Directive 89/106/EEC of the Council.

  Of just over 1,950 Scottish Statutory Instruments made during the first session of the Parliament, approximately 10% contained measures in connection with implementation of European Union legislation in Scotland.

Maternity Services

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of babies are in need of immediate paediatric care when born.

Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not held centrally.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients under 18 have been prescribed Seroxat in the last three years, broken down by age.

Malcolm Chisholm: Prescription data available centrally are not patient-specific, but relate to the numbers and cost of prescribed items dispensed in the community by community pharmacists and dispensing doctors.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients over 18 have been prescribed Seroxat as an anti-depressant in the last three years.

Malcolm Chisholm: Prescription data available centrally are not patient-specific, but relate to the numbers and cost of prescribed items dispensed in the community by community pharmacists and dispensing doctors.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance will be issued regarding the use of Seroxat in light of the review by the Committee on the Safety of Medicines.

Malcolm Chisholm: The UK Committee on Safety of Medicine (CSM) has advised against the use of Seroxat in children and adolescents aged under 18 suffering from depressive illness. On 10 June 2003, the Scottish Executive Health Department issued the CSM advice to relevant health care professionals in NHSScotland.

  Product information for Seroxat is being updated to include the CSM advice. The revised Summary of Product Characteristics is now available on the Electronic Medicines Compendium website (www.emc.vhn.net) and will be sent to prescribers and pharmacists.

  The advice, together with other material such as a question and answer document, is now available on the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency website www.mhra.gov.uk.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made by NHS regional planning groups with regard to specialist services for diagnosis and treatment of perinatal mental illness.

Malcolm Chisholm: The three NHS regional planning groups were asked to review provision of joint arrangements for the care and treatment of mothers suffering from post-natal depression and their babies, in the context of the Scottish Intercollegiate Guideline Network (SIGN) guideline on post-natal depression and puerperal psychosis published in June 2002.

  Each group has now responded. All boards have indicated that they are committed to meeting the guideline. Some boards intend to achieve this within their own facilities and resources. They emphasise the importance of caring for mothers and their babies as close as possible to the communities in which they live, and the use of appropriate care and treatment protocols. Boards in the west of Scotland are undertaking a review of needs and are considering plans for shared services.

  A short-life working group has been established by the department to produce guidance on appropriate hospital admission arrangements to enable mothers with post-natal depression to be admitted with their child. It is intended to produce guidance by December 2003, reflecting the full range of needs including access to specialist services where appropriate.

  The department will continue to monitor progress, taking account of the latest available guidance and the steps being taken by the boards.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what research projects funded by the Chief Scientist Office have examined perinatal mental illness; when the results of such projects will be available, and whether copies of such research will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Chief Scientist Office, (CSO), is currently funding a research project on the diagnosis of perinatal mental illness in women and their partners and is also funding a research fellowship on the treatment of post-natal depression. These projects are due for completion in July and September 2004 respectively, at which point final reports will be submitted to CSO for review. The Executive summaries from these final reports will be made available on the CSO website, (www.show.scot.nhs.uk/cso), with contact details provided on where to obtain further information.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when Scottish Intercollegiate Guideline Network guideline on post-natal depression and puerperal psychosis and the Executive’s guidance on post-natal depression services were compiled and published and whether there are any plans to revise and update these documents.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Scottish Intercollegiate Guideline Network guideline on post-natal depression and puerperal psychosis (Bib. number 25439) was compiled over the period two years prior to its publication on 20 June 2002 and will be considered for review in 2004.

  The Scottish Executive guidance on services for women with post-natal depression (Bib. number 24358) was compiled over the five-month period prior to its publication on 18 March 1999. The guidance is kept under review for currency and relevancy. In this case decisions on revisions will be informed by the outcomes of the current audit of best practice funded by NHS Quality Improvement Scotland into primary and secondary care post-natal depression services in Scotland.

  A short-life working group has been established to produce a template for the best organisation of hospital admission arrangements to allow mothers with a post-natal depression to be admitted with their child. The aim is to produce guidance by December 2003 that reflects the full range of needs including access to specialist services where appropriate. Any issues arising from that consideration will further inform any revision of current guidance.

NHS Staff

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what measurable improvements in staffing levels there have been following the agreement between NHS employers and trade unions to introduce the minimum pay rate of £5.18 per hour, as announced by the Minister for Health and Community Care on 30 January 2003 in response to the Audit Scotland report, Hospital cleaning .

Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not held centrally.

Nursing

Elaine Smith (Coatbridge and Chryston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to subsidise the costs incurred by NHS nurses in respect of re-registration and continual professional development.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Scottish Executive has no role in the regulation of nurses and midwives. Responsibility for the regulation of nurses and midwives rests with the Nursing and Midwifery Council. Due to the nature of self-regulation for all health professionals, nurses and midwives are responsible for the cost of maintaining their registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council.

  Partnership for Care sets out a commitment to develop an entitlement to Continuous Professional Development (CPD) for all staff. NHS boards also need to work in partnership with staff to ensure that they are supported and encouraged to develop and maintain their skills. In 2002-03, as part of the Facing the Future initiative, the Scottish Executive allocated £1.75 million in 2002-03 to NHS trusts on the understanding that it was used in addition to existing CPD funding. The Facing the Future Group will be considering how those funds have been used.

People with Disabilities

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on how many people between the age of 16 to 65 are currently in receipt of incapacity and disability payments.

Malcolm Chisholm: The provision of disability and invalidity benefits is a reserved matter and is for the Department of Work and Pensions. The Executive has no functions in relation to the provision of benefits and holds no information on the numbers of people in receipt of the benefits referred to.

  Information about the numbers of people who are currently in receipt of community care services in Scotland due to disability can be found in Scottish Community Care Statistics 2001, copies of which are available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 24284).

Rail Network

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how long it will extend the current ScotRail franchise beyond the expiry date of 31 March 2004 and what the cost implications are of doing so.

Nicol Stephen: The Strategic Rail Authority has advised that an extension to the current franchise is likely to enable mobilisation of the new franchise. The current franchise agreement allows for an extension on non-negotiable terms of up to seven four-week periods (approximately six months). At this stage, it is not possible to say how long an extension will be required. The cost of such an extension will be calculated on a no net loss or gain basis.

Regulatory Bodies

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what arrangements there are for Scottish representation at the Office of Communications (OFCOM).

Mr Frank McAveety: Communications regulation is reserved to the UK Government. There is currently a Scottish member on OFCOM’s Content Board. Later this year, a Scottish representative will be appointed to the new regulator’s Consumer Panel. In addition, a Scottish committee will be established within the OFCOM structure, providing another important mechanism for ensuring Scottish interests are addressed by the regulator. OFCOM will also be obliged to maintain an office within Scotland.

Social Work

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures are being taken to recruit more graduates and older people to the social work profession.

Euan Robson: In October 2002 the Executive launched Care in Scotland, a national recruitment and awareness campaign to attract more people of all ages into social care. In addition, jointly with COSLA, we are piloting a fast-track scheme for graduates with relevant degrees or experience to retrain as social workers. We have also introduced an incentive scheme, worth up to £9,000 for social work graduates from 2004.

  On 27 January the then Minister for Education and Young People announced unprecedented additional investment in social work education and other measures that will increase the numbers of social workers in post -

  £2 million over this financial year and the next in grants to universities, local authorities and voluntary organisations to help meet the costs of student practice placements;

  A pilot fast-tracking system for graduates with relevant degrees or experience to retrain as social workers within 15 to 18 months. This scheme attracted around 2,000 applications and 59 candidates have been shortlisted, and

  Return to Practice programmes to encourage trained staff back into the social work profession.

Special Educational Needs

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of the education budget for 2003-04 has been allocated to children with any form of special needs; how this proportion is to be allocated to each local authority, and how this compares with the allocation in (a) 1999-2000, (b) 2000-01, (c) 2001-02 and (d) 2002-03.

Peter Peacock: Funds are distributed to local authorities through Grant Aided Expenditure. It is for individual local authorities to determine how much they allocate to each service, including special educational needs, from their unhypothecated revenue grant. In 2003-04, the Executive is providing local authorities with specific grant funding of £20 million through the Inclusion Programme, and £7.2 million to support staff development and training. These funds are distributed according to the breakdown of similar funds for 2002-03, details of which are provided in the answer given to question S2W-536 on 12 June 2003. This provides a breakdown of specific grant funding on a local authority basis for the period 1999 to 2003. A further £9 million is being added to grant aided expenditure in 2003-04 to support the implementation of accessibility strategies. The breakdown of this funding by each local authority area is provided in Table A.

  Local authority net expenditure on education and special educational needs is available for the period 1999-2000 to 2001-02 only, and is provided in tables B to D. The 2002-03 budget estimates, provided by local authorities, are consistent with the figures in previous years.

  All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

  Table A

  2003-04 Accessibility Strategy Allocations £9 Million

  


 


Allocation of Funding
(£000) 
  



Aberdeen City 
  

358 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

421 
  



Angus 
  

192 
  



Argyll and Bute 
  

143 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

88 
  



Dumfries and Galloway 
  

250 
  



Dundee City 
  

251 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

215 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

187 
  



East Lothian 
  

159 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

161 
  



Edinburgh, City of 
  

715 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

47 
  



Falkirk 
  

251 
  



Fife 
  

625 
  



Glasgow City 
  

1,066 
  



Highland 
  

373 
  



Inverclyde 
  

152 
  



Midlothian 
  

144 
  



Moray 
  

158 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

255 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

604 
  



Orkney Islands 
  

35 
  



Perth and Kinross 
  

232 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

320 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

178 
  



Shetland Islands 
  

45 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

194 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

555 
  



Stirling 
  

153 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

180 
  



West Lothian 
  

292 
  



Scotland 
  

9,000 
  



  Table B

  


Total Net Expenditure1
Special Education and Total 
  

1999-2000
(£000) 
  



Special Education2


Total Education 
  

Special Education as % of Total Education 
  



Scotland 
  

219,481 
  

2,660,650 
  

8.2 
  



Aberdeen City 
  

9,172 
  

96,074 
  

9.5 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

11,230 
  

126,642 
  

8.9 
  



Angus 
  

3,850 
  

55,522 
  

6.9 
  



Argyll and Bute 
  

3,134 
  

51,987 
  

6.0 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

2,528 
  

25,480 
  

9.9 
  



Dumfries and Galloway 
  

8,819 
  

76,526 
  

11.5 
  



Dundee City 
  

8,215 
  

77,520 
  

10.6 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

4,678 
  

65,799 
  

7.1 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

3,682 
  

60,506 
  

6.1 
  



East Lothian 
  

2,835 
  

46,671 
  

6.1 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

2,823 
  

51,040 
  

5.5 
  



Edinburgh, City of 
  

13,427 
  

180,158 
  

7.5 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

1,775 
  

26,110 
  

6.8 
  



Falkirk 
  

8,897 
  

69,923 
  

12.7 
  



Fife 
  

21,103 
  

182,355 
  

11.6 
  



Glasgow City 
  

29,096 
  

285,760 
  

10.2 
  



Highland 
  

12,678 
  

126,942 
  

10.0 
  



Inverclyde 
  

2,963 
  

48,920 
  

6.1 
  



Midlothian 
  

3,607 
  

46,730 
  

7.7 
  



Moray 
  

4,352 
  

46,696 
  

9.3 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

4,546 
  

74,933 
  

6.1 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

13,754 
  

179,609 
  

7.7 
  



Orkney Islands 
  

1,073 
  

17,644 
  

6.1 
  



Perth and Kinross 
  

3,594 
  

66,272 
  

5.4 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

5,525 
  

93,917 
  

5.9 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

4,616 
  

54,354 
  

8.5 
  



Shetland Islands 
  

1,556 
  

26,519 
  

5.9 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

2,458 
  

55,936 
  

4.4 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

11,286 
  

156,508 
  

7.2 
  



Stirling 
  

2,721 
  

45,451 
  

6.0 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

3,801 
  

56,191 
  

6.8 
  



West Lothian 
  

5,439 
  

85,955 
  

6.3 
  



  Source: As reported by local authorities on the Statistical Return LFR 1 Education for financial years 1999-2000 and 2001-02.

  Notes:

  1. Net expenditure is expenditure met from council tax, non-domestic rates and revenue support grant and includes support service costs and revenue contributions to capital apportioned notionally pro rata to expenditure on operating costs.

  2. Special education contains expenditure on special schools and special classes in primary or secondary schools, and on educational psychologists.

  Table C

  


Total Net Expenditure1
Special Education and Total 
  

2000-01
(000) 
  



Special Education2


Total Education 
  

Special Education as % of Total Education 
  



Scotland 
  

236,266 
  

2,788,012 
  

8.5 
  



Aberdeen City 
  

9,678 
  

97,931 
  

9.9 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

11,978 
  

129,144 
  

9.3 
  



Angus 
  

3,885 
  

58,808 
  

6.6 
  



Argyll and Bute 
  

3,351 
  

54,899 
  

6.1 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

2,997 
  

26,197 
  

11.4 
  



Dumfries and Galloway 
  

9,022 
  

79,759 
  

11.3 
  



Dundee City 
  

8,316 
  

79,196 
  

10.5 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

6,308 
  

68,360 
  

9.2 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

3,872 
  

63,112 
  

6.1 
  



East Lothian 
  

2,388 
  

45,882 
  

5.2 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

3,176 
  

54,091 
  

5.9 
  



Edinburgh, City of 
  

14,518 
  

187,767 
  

7.7 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

1,863 
  

27,397 
  

6.8 
  



Falkirk 
  

10,933 
  

80,526 
  

13.6 
  



Fife 
  

17,965 
  

189,651 
  

9.5 
  



Glasgow City 
  

33,058 
  

309,230 
  

10.7 
  



Highland 
  

14,201 
  

132,140 
  

10.7 
  



Inverclyde 
  

2,905 
  

50,021 
  

5.8 
  



Midlothian 
  

3,356 
  

48,208 
  

7.0 
  



Moray 
  

5,078 
  

49,899 
  

10.2 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

5,059 
  

78,346 
  

6.5 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

15,040 
  

189,765 
  

7.9 
  



Orkney Islands 
  

1,114 
  

17,178 
  

6.5 
  



Perth and Kinross 
  

4,121 
  

67,748 
  

6.1 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

5,843 
  

97,550 
  

6.0 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

5,426 
  

58,878 
  

9.2 
  



Shetland Islands 
  

1,763 
  

32,243 
  

5.5 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

2,637 
  

58,315 
  

4.5 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

12,614 
  

162,672 
  

7.8 
  



Stirling 
  

3,729 
  

47,328 
  

7.9 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

3,799 
  

57,016 
  

6.7 
  



West Lothian 
  

5,806 
  

88,755 
  

6.5 
  



  Source: As reported by local authorities on the Statistical Return LFR 1 Education for financial years 1999-2000 and 2001-02.

  Notes:

  1. Net expenditure is expenditure met from council tax, non-domestic rates and revenue support grant and includes support service costs and revenue contributions to capital apportioned notionally pro rata to expenditure on operating costs.

  2. Special education contains expenditure on special schools and special classes in primary or secondary schools, and on educational psychologists.

  Table D

  


Total Net Expenditure1 
Special Education and Total 
  

2001-02
(£000) 
  



Special Education2


Total Education 
  

Special Education as % of Total Education 
  



Scotland 
  

258,647 
  

3,001,360 
  

8.6 
  



Aberdeen City 
  

10,555 
  

104,572 
  

10.1 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

13,402 
  

142,216 
  

9.4 
  



Angus 
  

4,011 
  

62,313 
  

6.4 
  



Argyll and Bute 
  

4,034 
  

56,704 
  

7.1 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

3,277 
  

29,086 
  

11.3 
  



Dumfries and Galloway 
  

9,608 
  

85,243 
  

11.3 
  



Dundee City 
  

9,450 
  

85,189 
  

11.1 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

6,666 
  

74,001 
  

9.0 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

4,564 
  

69,357 
  

6.6 
  



East Lothian 
  

2,022 
  

53,160 
  

3.8 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

3,195 
  

60,121 
  

5.3 
  



Edinburgh, City of 
  

16,502 
  

202,036 
  

8.2 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

2,169 
  

28,011 
  

7.7 
  



Falkirk 
  

11,308 
  

89,997 
  

12.6 
  



Fife 
  

18,269 
  

206,555 
  

8.8 
  



Glasgow City 
  

36,478 
  

325,810 
  

11.2 
  



Highland 
  

16,112 
  

138,100 
  

11.7 
  



Inverclyde 
  

2,731 
  

52,492 
  

5.2 
  



Midlothian 
  

3,780 
  

52,667 
  

7.2 
  



Moray 
  

5,595 
  

51,117 
  

10.9 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

5,233 
  

84,590 
  

6.2 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

16,451 
  

208,942 
  

7.9 
  



Orkney Islands 
  

1,247 
  

18,630 
  

6.7 
  



Perth and Kinross 
  

4,308 
  

73,767 
  

5.8 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

6,642 
  

104,885 
  

6.3 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

6,100 
  

62,392 
  

9.8 
  



Shetland Islands 
  

2,461 
  

28,187 
  

8.7 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

2,182 
  

62,038 
  

3.5 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

14,930 
  

173,718 
  

8.6 
  



Stirling 
  

4,340 
  

53,718 
  

8.1 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

4,559 
  

60,568 
  

7.5 
  



West Lothian 
  

6,122 
  

101,178 
  

6.1 
  



  Source: As reported by local authorities on the Statistical Return LFR 1 Education for financial years 1999-2000 and 2001-02.

  Notes:

  1. Net expenditure is expenditure met from council tax, non-domestic rates and revenue support grant and includes support service costs and revenue contributions to capital apportioned notionally pro rata to expenditure on operating costs.

  2. Special education contains expenditure on special schools and special classes in primary or secondary Schools, and on educational psychologists.

Telecommunications

Mr Ted Brocklebank (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is conducting any studies into any possible effects on public health of mobile telephone masts and transmitters.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Scottish Executive is contributing, with other Government departments and the industry, to a substantial programme of research with a budget of over £7 million. The programme – the LINK Mobile Telecommunications and Health Research Programme - has been set up under the direction of an independent scientific Programme Management Committee and is Chaired by Professor Lawrie Challis OBE, Emeritus Professor of Physics at Nottingham University. Further information about the research is available at www.mthr.org.uk.

Tourism

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what events have been funded by Events Scotland; for what future events funding from the body has been agreed; how much the funding was, or will be, in respect of each event, and what the criteria are for support from Events Scotland and, in particular, whether there are any criteria relating to the size, cost or location of the event.

Mr Frank McAveety: The Major Events Strategy, launched by the First Minister in November 2002, sets out sixteen basic criteria that are adhered to when evaluating potential events for EventScotland support. These criteria include a commitment to prioritise events that highlight and promote the unique appeal and proposition of individual locations throughout Scotland, events that focus on quiet times of the year and events, which are available, achievable and affordable.

  EventScotland has funded or approved funding for the following events:

  


Event 
  

Date 
  

Funding 
  



Balmoral Road Races Women’s Mile 
  

May 2003 
  

£35,000 
  



International Festival of the Sea 
  

May 2003 
  

£100,000 
  



Fort William Mountain Bike World Cup 
  

May 2003 
  

£30,000 
  



Tiree Wave Classic, Final of the Triple Crown Windsurfing 
  Championships 
  

October 2003 
  

£25,000 
  



MTV Europe Music Awards 
  

November 2003 
  

£125,000

Waste Management

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what processes will be categorised as diversion of waste away from landfill.

Ross Finnie: Processes classified as diversion of waste away from landfill are the Recovery Operations set out in Annex IIB of directive 75/442/EEC on waste as amended by directive 91/156/EEC. This can be found at:

  http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/consleg/pdf/1971/en_1975L0442_do_001.pdf.

Waste Management

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive who will be responsible for monitoring the diversion of waste away from landfill.

Ross Finnie: It is likely, under the proposed new system for landfill allowances, that the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) will monitor the amount of waste sent to landfill or diverted from landfill by local authorities. Regulations to implement the landfill allowance system will be subject to public consultation later this year.

  In the meantime, all licensed waste management operators are required to provide regular reports to SEPA including information on the amount of waste treated or disposed to landfill. Local authorities also provide similar information to SEPA as part of the annual Local Authorities Waste Arisings Survey. SEPA publishes an annual Data Digest, which is available on its website at http://www.sepa.org.uk/. Audit Scotland also publishes information on local authority waste management activity as part of its Statutory Performance Indicators. This provides annual information on the amount of waste that each local authority handles and how this is treated. This information is available on its website at http://www.audit-scotland.co.uk/.

Waste Management

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive who is responsible for regulating packaging waste recovery notes.

Ross Finnie: The Scottish Environment Protection Agency.

Waste Management

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether a review has been carried out into the effectiveness of packaging waste recovery notes.

Ross Finnie: Along with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the other devolved administrations, we are currently undertaking a fact-finding exercise into allegations that packaging recovery notes (PRNs) have been issued inappropriately by some reprocessors in the wood packaging waste sector. This aims to identify weaknesses in the recording and monitoring systems and audit trails which wood packaging waste reprocessors use to manage the allocation and issue of PRNs. Any lessons learned are likely to be able to be applied to the PRN scheme as a whole.

  Reviews of The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 1997 were undertaken in 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001. A further review will be undertaken this summer. This will include discussion on whether to amend the PRN system.